DR-DOS

DR-DOS

A multitasking DOS-compatible operating system from DRDOS, Inc., Lindon, UT (www.drdos.com). DR-DOS is used in embedded systems, thin clients and bootable disks for antivirus recovery programs. The embedded version includes display antialiasing so that it can be used in set-top boxes attached to TV sets. DR-DOS has also brought life into older PCs, because it adds a driver that makes old ROM BIOSs Y2K compliant. A graphics-based DOS browser is also available that lets old 386 computers access the Internet.

Quite a History
DR-DOS has an illustrious history. It was originally developed by Digital Research, the creators of CP/M, as the single-user version of Concurrent DOS. The operating system was extremely popular during the late 1980s and early 1990s, because it added many features lacking in MS-DOS, including memory management and disk compression. DR-DOS Version 5 was the first retail version of DOS that could be purchased in a computer store. DR-DOS motivated Microsoft to improve subsequent versions of MS-DOS and also make a major effort to keep DR-DOS from succeeding, which it accomplished.

A Lot of Moving Around
In 1991, Digital Research was acquired by Novell, which later sold DR-DOS to Caldera. Since Caldera owned the history of the product, it sued Microsoft in 1999 for antitrust violations. The case was later settled. Caldera then spun off DR-DOS to Lineo, Inc., a Canopy company, where it was enhanced for the embedded market. In 2002, DeviceLogics acquired the product. A couple years later, DeviceLogics changed its name to DRDOS, Inc.